Facts About the Collective Bargaining Exemption to the
New Bond Requirement in the Car Wash Worker Law
The Bond Requirement
The new Car Wash Worker Law that went into effect on
January 1, 2014, continues to require all California car
washes to register with the State Department of Labor
Standards Enforcement (DSLE). It further provides that no
car wash can register or renew its registration (as required
annually) unless it has “obtained a surety bond issued by a
surety company admitted to do business in this state. The
principal sum of the bond shall be not less than one hundred
fifty thousand dollars ($150,000).” The car wash is required
to “file a copy of the bond with the commissioner” of the
DSLE. Finally, the law provides that a car wash “may not
conduct any business until the [car wash] obtains a new
surety bond and files a copy of it with the commissioner.”
The purpose of the bond requirement is to insure that
workers who are not paid in accordance with law can be
compensated if their employer disappears or is otherwise
unable to pay wages or benefits owed the employees. The
law provides that the bond “shall be for the benefit of any
employee damaged by his or her [car wash] employer's
failure to pay wages, interest on wages, or fringe benefits” or
tips as required by law.
The law provides that a car wash “may not
conduct any business until the [car wash] obtains a new surety bond and files a copy of it
with the commissioner.”
The Exception to the Bond Requirement for Car Washes Party to a Collective Bargaining
Agreement
The law creates an exception to the bond requirement for car washes that are party to collective bargaining agreements
containing terms that protect workers against nonpayment of wages. The law provides that the bond requirement “shall not
apply to [a car wash] employer covered by a valid collective bargaining agreement, if the agreement expressly provides for all
of the following: (A) Wages. (B) Hours of work. (C) Working conditions. (D) An expeditious process to resolve disputes
concerning nonpayment of wages.”
A valid collective bargaining agreement is an agreement entered into between a car wash employer and a bona fide union, i.e.,
not one that is created or dominated by the employer.
A qualifying agreement must create an expeditious process to resolve disputes concerning nonpayment of wages. Most
collective bargaining agreements create such a process in the form of a grievance procedure through which employees or their
union can file a grievance concerning nonpayment of wages with the car wash employer. If the parties cannot resolve the
dispute between themselves through the grievance procedure, most collective bargaining agreements provide for final and
binding resolution by an impartial arbitrator. This process is far quicker and less expensive than litigation and satisfies the
requirement of the Car Wash Workers Law.
The Law of Collective Bargaining
A car wash employer can engage in collective bargaining with
a union that represents a majority of its employees. Collective
bargaining can take place after the union provides evidence of
such majority support (for example, cards or a petition signed
by employees) to the car wash employer or an agreed upon
third party or after an election supervised by the National
Labor Relations Board.
A car wash employer cannot attempt to influence its
employees’ decision about whether to be represented by a
union through any form of threat or promise of benefits. But a
car wash employer is free to express its views in a noncoercive
manner, including its view that employees should be
represented by a union. A car wash employer can also permit
union representatives to speak to employees in the car wash
and provide a list of employees to a union so long as it does
not discriminate between unions seeking to represent the car
wash’s employees.
After a majority of employees support union representation, a
car wash employer can immediately recognize the union and
begin bargaining. The parties can agree to the same collective
bargaining agreement in effect at another car wash, they can
modify such an agreement, or they can bargain a new
agreement.
The law provides that the bond
requirement shall not apply to a car wash
employer covered by a valid collective
bargaining agreement, if the agreement
expressly provides for all of the following:
(A)Wages
(B)Hours of work
(C)Working conditions
(D)An expeditious process to resolve
disputes concerning nonpayment of
wages
A Qualifying Collective Bargaining Agreement
The Car Wash Workers Organizing Committee and the United Steelworkers have several collective bargaining
agreements with Los Angeles area car washes that the Labor Commission has found comply with the requirements
of the Car Wash Workers Law. One such agreement is attached.
The Carwash Workers Organizing Committee
The Carwash Workers Organizing Committee is
organizing car wash employees in the Los Angeles area so
that they can be represented by the United Steelworkers. If
you believe your employees would like to talk to the
Committee about representation and collective bargaining
so that your carwash can be exempt from the bond
requirement, please contact Justin McBride at 323-2322089.
Union members and community members celebrate a year of
prosperity with a carwash owner after working together.
Produced by the CLEAN Carwash Campaign, 516 W. Vernon Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90037